Back to Page 1 - Intro and Features

   Styling - Winner: ReplayTV / TiVo

While this category is somewhat subjective.  It is difficult to look at these receivers and not immediately notice the drastic difference in styling.   For a closer look click on the picture on the right

DishPlayer Styling - I have never been a fan of the styling of the Echostar products.  However, the DishPlayer is probably one of their best so far.  It is basically a dark gray box with a diagonal cut out on the right side.   Echostar should look into getting an styling studio to do a new bezel for the DishPlayer. ReplayTV Styling - The styling of this box is simple and clean, which seems to be more the norm in modern electronic and audio equipment.   The front bezel is almost perfectly flat except for a small indentation on the bottom that serves to break up the otherwise plain design.  This is definitely my favorite of the three because it should blend in with high end equipment very well. TiVo Styling - TiVO has a distinctly futuristic look.  It 's tall black bezel has what looks like a single eye looking out at the world.   Being the largest of the units, the bezel does a good job of hiding the bulk of the unit.  It may look out of place on a rack with other equipment with a less modern look.

   Pricing - Tie

PTV is new technology.  So right now it seems like they are only for the earlier adaptors among us.  It is really a shame too.  My mother would love a TiVo, but would never spend this much.    Prices on all of these units must come down soon to achieve mass appeal.  I would look for a price point around $300 for 20 Hours before we see large numbers of people throwing out their VCR.   

Keep in mind that  you can't compare these units apples to apples.  For instance the DishPlayer must be activated with Dish Network  service.  Also the record times are different, leading to different values.

DishPlayer Pricing /10-15 Hours

If I had written this review a week ago, this category would  would have gone to the DishPlayer by a big margin, Echostar has increased the price of  DishPlayer pricing to match that of the TiVo.  

Current pricing for a DishPlayer 7200 is $399 for a full system and $349 for a standalone unit.   If you are a new Dish Network subscriber you can get a $199 if you commit to a year contract at 39.95 a month.   In addition to this you must also pay $10 a month for the PTV services.

$589 = Cost of unit + Cost of service for 2 years

TiVo Pricing - 6-14 Hours

Current pricing for the Philips TiVo is 399 for the 14 hour unit.  In reality the amount of time that can be recorded is somewhere closer to 10 Hours. You must also pay the $10/month service to receive the Guide information that is so critical to most of the TiVo features.  There is also an option to buy a lifetime subscription to the guide information for $199.  Break even is right around 1.8 years, so if you think you will have it longer than that get the lifetime subscription.

$639  = Cost of TiVo (399)+ Cost of Service for 2 Years (240)
 or
$599  = Cost of TiVo (399)+ Cost of Service forever (199)

ReplayTV Pricing

Current pricing for the ReplayTV RTV2020i is $699.  Ouch!!!  However, service is free forever and you get more recording time than TiVo, so the difference isn't that much when you consider these factors.

$599 = Cost of ReplayTV + Cost of Service (FREE)

   Usability - Winner: DishPlayer

Because this is new technology, there is a learning curve.  The key for all of these companies is to provide this complex technology in  a simple to use package.   There are two areas to focus on when creating an easy to use system.  The Remote Control and The Graphical Interface.  Check out the Guides for details.   

ReplayTV - Replay TV has a very simple interface to use.  It doesn't have any audible feedback that a key is pressed, which is only missed because the other two units have it.  Organized around an onscreen menu that can be displayed over the front of Live TV, navigating is as simple as selecting from the six options.  However, I found the ReplayTV remote to be the most complex of the three.   A redesign of the Remote would easily have made the difference for ReplayTV in this category, as otherwise it is a great interface

DishPlayer - What can I say.  Microsoft wrote the interface and it shows.  It is simple to use, with simple non-distracting audible clues that you have pressed a button.  This is helped by a great remote control that does a good job of being very ergonomic and powerful.

TiVo - TiVo also has a pretty and friendly interface but it suffers from too many levels at times.  It does, however, have one of the friendliest remote controls I have ever seen.  It fits comfortably in your hand and has large easy to find buttons.   

 Page 3 - Picture Quality and Compatibility